Eduard 1/72 Hellcat mk1

[yak face]

This is something I got off ebay for a bargain price due to the kit having half of the decals missing . Fortunately the scheme I wanted to do is the one thats left on the decal sheet, for the aircraft off of HMS Indomitable . Its a beautiful looking kit and I remember that when Colin did his a bit back he found it built up with no problems . Off we go then , first off is the cockpit .

[flyjoe180]

Should be a good build experience, Tony.

[yak face]

Yes it looks like a simple enough build but still plenty of detail where it matters , might be a quick job !

[HAWKERHUNTER]

Chair pulled up Tony.

[Geoffers]

I’ve just bought one of these Tony so looking forward to seeing how it goes together 👍

Geoff.

[yak face]

With a bit of careful painting the cockpit looks fine . The kit includes 2 instrument panels , one with raised detail and a plain ,flat one with a decal on the sheet for the instruments . I chose to use the decal and the raised panel instead of the flat one as I think the raised detail looks a bit more realistic . The decal settled down ok with a bit of decal softener.
The kit also provides seat belts on the decal sheet , so I thought I’d give them a try , and if they didnt look good then just remove them and use some PE ones i have. The lap belts didnt look too bad but the shoulder harnesses looked too flat and broke up a bit , so they were replaced with PE .

[colin m]

Things are looking good. And yes, it's a nice little kit. 1:72, good for the soul..

[yak face]

True colin , i’m getting a real satisfaction out of 1/72 stuff recently

[flyjoe180]

Very nice work Tony. Hopefully you will be able to see most of it under the canopy.

[yak face]

Cheers joe , the kit comes with two canopies , one for closed and a slightly wider one for the open option , i’ll be using the open one

[papa 695]

Nice one Tony, I’ve got one to build also, but from the Eduard combo set.
a cracking start. Looking forward to seeing you build this one.

[yak face]

Thanks Ian , it builds up quite quickly once the cockpit is done , so quick in fact that I forgot to take any pics and its now in primer!

[yak face]

Well this has gone together very quickly , the only thing was the fitting of the wings. The wing to fuselage joint is a large recessed hole , the full profile of the wing ,which the wing is supposed to slot into but it was too tight a fit. The wings needed carefully sanding down bit by bit until they slotted in . The tailplanes ,engine and cowling fitted no problems . Here it is after a coat of primer and having had the sky undersides applied .

[papa 695]

Nice

[flyjoe180]

Coming along quickly Tony. Better a slightly too-tight fit than a canyon for a gap 😀

[yak face]

First upper colour on , dark slate grey

[Steven000]

Great start Tony, camo looks nice, cheers

[flyjoe180]

Looking good Tony

[yak face]

Extra dark sea grey now applied , unmasking tomorrow